Hamas hands over remains of one Israeli; 4 dead captives still in Gaza

CAIRO – 9 November 2025: Israel has received the body of a dead captive from Gaza through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement Sunday.

The body will be transferred to forensic authorities for identification.

Hamas announced that it will hand over the body of Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin, who was found yesterday in a tunnel in Rafah city, at 2 PM today. Goldin was killed during the Israeli war in Gaza in 2014.

His return will bring the number of dead captives still held in Gaza down to four.

If the body is confirmed to be of an Israeli captive, Israel will return the remains of 15 more Palestinians under a ceasefire and a prisoner swap deal agreed by Hamas and Tel Aviv last month.

Under this initial phase, Hamas handed over all 20 living captives it was holding, along with the remains of 24 out of 28 dead captives so far if Goldin’s identity is confirmed.

In return, Israel has handed over nearly 2,000 living and 300 deceased Palestinians it had killed.